Croque-Monsieur The French take the pairing of ham and cheese seriously, and this is no more apparent than in a croque-monsieur. It’s a toasted ham and cheese sandwich that’s baked until crisp and covered in a decadent béchamel sauce. Add an egg on top and its name is changed to croque-madame.
At culinary school, students are taught traditional French techniques, like how to make the mother sauces, the difference between julienne and chiffonade, and the importance of mise en place. Why? Because in the food world, French cookery is considered the basis of all other styles of cuisine. If you know how to make a fricassée or hollandaise, you can certainly make macaroni and cheese or Caesar salad.
Serve this French Madeleine recipe during tea time along with Coffee or Tea, dunked in Chocolate ganache.
a French dessert often served at weddings, but you can make this stunning showstopper for any occasion. A croquembouche consists of a towering cone of vanilla pastry cream and caramel-dipped profiteroles, held together with dripping caramel and decorated with sugared almonds. Modern versions are often made with creative pastry cream flavors and then decorated with flowers, sugar art, and even melted chocolate.
A classic of the French kitchen, soufflés have struggled under the bad reputation of being difficult for far too long. The truth is a soufflé is easy to make and not nearly as sensitive as people often say. Yes, you can open the oven door; no, you don’t need to walk on eggshells while making it (though you should try to keep the eggshells out of the soufflé mixture). The secret to its success lies in the ability of beaten egg whites to expand as gases and steam to inflate tiny air bubbles larger and larger. It’s just science, and it works.
